Lagos 2016 IGR nears 300billion
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode has commended tax payers in the State for performing their civic obligations faithfully, because this year, Lagos has surpass the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) record of 2015, despite economic recession in the country.
The Governor said that as of December 16, 2016 the State had raked in N287bn IGR for the year under review as against N268.2bn generated in 2015.
Speaking at a special evening of music and camaraderie held Sunday at the Lagos House, Ikeja, to usher in the Yuletide season, Governor Ambode said the taxes paid by the people had been judiciously utilised to upgrade infrastructures and provide various services, just as he said Lagosians deserved to be appreciated for cooperating with government in that regard.
“The tax payers are the ones giving us the little energy that we have and even when they say Nigeria is in recession, but somehow Lagos has been able to do it and it is because people are paying their taxes.
“The truth is that the people have been carrying out their civic obligations and somehow we have been returning those obligations with the services that we have provided and you found out that this year; we have actually made more IGR than last year under a recession,” Governor Ambode said.
The rise in IGR has come as a result of increase tax awareness among Lagosians and government aggressiveness in the provision of infrastructures, and this included the smart city initiative which has progressively improved the ease of doing business in Lagos. One of the innovations by the government to enhance the ease of doing business in Lagos is the creation of Office of Overseas Affairs and Investment.
“We needed to find a place where our foreign investors, foreign business men will come in without going from one ministry to the other, … we needed to have a 24/7 one-stop shop office where we can drive investment, especially where our businessmen can actually walk into and get everything that they need,” Governor Ambode said.
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